College Football Analyst Picks Tennessee's Starting QB

Film expert sees redshirt freshman Faizon Brandon as the best fit for Vols' offense

Mar. 22, 2026 at 9:25pm

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A college football film analyst has weighed in on Tennessee's three-way quarterback battle, predicting that redshirt freshman Faizon Brandon will win the starting job. The analyst cited Brandon's ability to limit turnovers and make reads on the backside of plays as key factors, noting that those skills fit well with Tennessee's pro-style offense under head coach Josh Heupel.

Why it matters

Tennessee is looking to build on a strong 2025 season offensively, and the quarterback competition will be a major storyline heading into the 2026 campaign. The analyst's assessment provides an outside perspective on the strengths and weaknesses of the three candidates vying for the starting role.

The details

The three quarterbacks competing for the starting job at Tennessee are redshirt-freshman George MacIntyre, true freshman Faizon Brandon, and Colorado transfer Ryan Staub. Film analyst Brooks Austin of The Film Guy Network broke down the limited college film available on MacIntyre as well as the high school film of MacIntyre and Brandon. Austin ultimately sided with Brandon, citing his 9-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio and ability to make backside reads, which he said is important for Heupel's pro-style offense.

  • Tennessee is just four practices into its spring slate.
  • The Vols will be back in action on Monday as they continue to work toward the annual Orange & White Game.
  • Heupel already said he doesn't expect to name a starter after this slate of practices, though.

The players

Faizon Brandon

A true freshman quarterback competing for the starting job at Tennessee.

George MacIntyre

A redshirt-freshman quarterback competing for the starting job at Tennessee.

Ryan Staub

A Colorado transfer quarterback competing for the starting job at Tennessee.

Josh Heupel

The head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers football team.

Brooks Austin

A college football film analyst for The Film Guy Network.

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What they’re saying

“If I have to bet on what I know, what I see and what I know, I'm going to bet on the guy that's got a 9-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio as opposed to the kid who can't seem to stop turning the ball over.”

— Brooks Austin, College Football Film Analyst

“Now, the wide-choice system, pretty turnover-averse. Doesn't really have a ton of it. Like I said, it's basically built off of can we throw it outside the numbers accurately? Are we great down the field? And George is great down the field.”

— Brooks Austin, College Football Film Analyst

“But, Jonathan, what if Tennessee wants to remain that pro-style mesh blend, because it looked great last year offensively. It was just a defensive issue, I felt like. But offensively, they were the best, complete version of themselves they've been since maybe 2022, in my opinion. If we want to remain that NFL kind of pro-style blend with wide-choice concepts, then we have to have somebody who can get to the backside of reads, and that's probably for my money going to be Faizon Brandon.”

— Brooks Austin, College Football Film Analyst

What’s next

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The takeaway

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